


Valentine Mishaps

by Treekianthia



Series: Bravely Babies [7]
Category: Bravely Default (Video Game) & Related Fandoms
Genre: Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Birthday, Bravely Default Spoilers, F/M, Family, Family Bonding, Gen, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-07
Updated: 2018-06-07
Packaged: 2019-05-19 10:02:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14871653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Treekianthia/pseuds/Treekianthia
Summary: Ringabel loves his youngest daughter, and of course he loves his wife, so when a little lie makes it difficult for he and Edea to spend Valentine’s Day together, he finds himself having to come clean to his little girl. (Fic Archive: 02/14/16)





	Valentine Mishaps

**Author's Note:**

> The following fic was originally posted to outside sources on 02/14/16. It is being posted here for archival purposes and to help document my progress as a writer. It is also part of a post-canon AU referred to as the Bravely Babies, and more info on the children characters and the AU itself can be found on my tumblr blog woodland-knight.

It had been a few years since Ringabel and Edea last celebrated a formal Valentine's Day with each other.

When their youngest daughter, Valentine, turned three, she had already started to understand what holidays were and why people celebrated them, but she had yet to understand the concept of Valentine's Day itself. Edea had tried to explain it to her daughter when she asked about it, but before Edea could finish explaining, Ringabel had interrupted and told their youngest daughter it was a day in which the entire country celebrated her birth.

Edea had warned him he shouldn't be telling their daughter lies, since Valentine might start expecting them to spend the entire day celebrating her and her birthday, but Ringabel assured Edea everything would be fine. He knew Valentine was smarter than most little girls, so she would more than likely figure out the truth on her own before any real damage was done. Edea still hadn't been convinced though, and pointed out that if he kept the lie up long enough, Valentine could get upset when she learned the truth. Ringabel, however, continued to reassure Edea that everything was going to be okay and that the harmless ruse wouldn't last for more than a day. They'd be back to celebrating both the holiday and their daughter's birthday by the next year.

Five years later though and Valentine still hadn't found out the truth about the holiday, much to her parents' surprise. Their family had grown bigger by one since then, and neither the twins nor Zealan had tried to explain the truth to Valentine when her birthday came around. Ringabel didn't have a problem with this though, as he had grown to like the sounds of his youngest daughter yelling “it's my day!” to wake him and Edea up every February 14th. Edea admitted that she found it adorable as well, but knew that Valentine was getting too old to keep believing the lie Ringabel had told her. It was time for her to learn the truth so they could go back to celebrating the holiday alongside her birthday, and Ringabel was going to be the one to tell it to her.

“Oh, come now, Edea! Another year of letting her have fun wouldn't hurt her!” Ringabel tried to convince Edea after she told him it was time to break the news to Valentine. He thought just because their daughter hadn't figured it out yet, it didn't mean she wasn't going to. He had been a bit bummed about not celebrating the holiday the past few years, but he felt his daughter was more important. Edea, however, felt differently.

 

“Ringabel, it was cute for the first four years, but Valentine is growing up, and it isn't going to benefit her to keep believing she has an entire holiday dedicated her. Plus, Valentine's Day is one of the few days during the year where we can spend a little bit of time together without the kids! I just need you to tell her the truth by the end of the day, or I'm telling her myself,” Edea told him, much to his disappointment. He was starting to realize she was right though, as much as he didn't want to admit it. They normally didn't have a lot of alone time except during the night, and he did miss spending extra time with her.

“Alright, Edea. I'll try to tell her. Just promise me you'll tell her nicely if I can't do it, okay?” he said with a look of defeat. Edea smiled at him and shook her head before placing her hand on his shoulder.

“It's not going to be that hard, Ringabel. Just explain the holiday and why you lied to her, and everything will be fine. I'm sure she can forgive you,” Edea assured him while continuing to smile. Ringabel nodded his head and sighed while he mentally prepared himself for his daughter's disappointment. Telling her the truth was definitely easier said than done, but he'd rather be the one to explain it to her in the end. He just wished he had a bit of help.

“Um... Sorry to interrupt, Mr. and Mrs. Lee, but breakfast is ready... The twins did make a bit of a mess, but everything is alright...”

Ringabel and Edea turned their heads towards the doorway and saw Zealan standing there with powdered sugar all over his jacket. Ringabel wondered if he had overheard the conversation about Valentine, but before he could ask, Zealan promptly left and headed back to the kitchen. Ringabel had hoped that maybe he could recruit Zealan to help him out, but the 18-year-old would have probably said no. Zealan was probably the person closest to Valentine, but his relationship with Ringabel wasn't as strong. It would be too difficult to get Zealan to agree to help as a result, so Ringabel ultimately decided against asking him.

By the time Edea and Ringabel finally went down to the kitchen, their children were already in the middle of breakfast. Both Zealan and Valentine had stacks of pancakes drowned in syrup and sugar, while a third plate set up the same way was waiting for Edea. Meanwhile, the twins had plates of eggs, bacon, and toast, and Ringabel noticed Alternis had swiped a piece of bacon off of his plate. Taking the piece back, Ringabel sat next to his oldest daughter before nibbling on the end of the bacon. Edea sat across from him and started to eat before making a small gesture towards Valentine.

“So, Valentine, dear...” Ringabel said in attempts to grab his youngest daughter's attention. “You know what today is, correct?”

“Of course I do! It's Valentine's Day, my day! The day that marks the day that I was born, and the day where grandpa sends me lots of gifts!” Valentine exclaimed with much enthusiasm. Ringabel heard Lyvia snort into her glass of milk and noticed Alternis was trying not to laugh. They obviously weren't going to support him on this either.

“Ah yes, that's right, dear! It is Valentine's Day, and to celebrate I'm going to take you out to get parfaits!” Ringabel told her with a sheepish laugh. Edea gave him a confused look, as they had planned to go out as a family, which Ringabel had completely forgotten about. “...of course, everyone else is coming too!” he quickly said to amend his mistake. He could hear Lyvia groaning.

“Dad, do we have to get parfaits? I don't like sweets, and neither do you!” Lyvia complained before biting into her toast. Ringabel knew she had a good point, but it was too late to turn back. He knew the others wouldn't complain of course, and he hoped that the last minute decision would work in his favore. He figured that giving Valentine a few parfaits would at least soften the blow about the fact she had been lied to, but that didn't make breaking it to her any easier.

“Stop complaining, Lyvia. It's Valentine's birthday, not yours. If she wants to get parfaits, then we'll get parfaits. I'm sure we can find something for us to eat at the cafe too,” he mentioned to her, which caused her to huff in annoyance. Valentine, however, was excited by this turn of events.

“Parfaits! Parfaits! We're going to get parfaits!” she cheered while trying to finish her breakfast. Ringabel glanced over at Edea, who gave him a thumbs up while working on her own breakfast. He was glad to know she at least agreed the parfaits might help a bit. Well, it was either that or she was just as excited to be getting Eternian parfaits from the local cafe as Valentine was. Either way, it was a victory for him so far.

The family promptly finished breakfast, and by the time noon came around they were already heading out to the cafe. Valentine had ran ahead of the group along with Zealan, leaving Ringabel and Edea to walk with the twins. The snow was deep, so they were trudging along at a snail's pace, but it gave time for Ringabel to think. He was starting to believe recruiting the twins to help him might be a good idea, and he was sure he could bribe them with something as long as it was reasonable. Before he could open his mouth though, Alternis came up with a proposal of his own.

“Let us take the Eschalot out whenever we want, and then we'll help you out,” Alternis told Ringabel without even turning to look at him. Ringabel stared at his son like he was crazy and knew there was no way he was going to agree to that. He  _had_ been considering bribing them, but definitely not with that.

“I may be a bit stumped, but I'm not desperate, Alternis!” Ringabel told him while trying to keep up. He knew his son was a good pilot, but he wasn't going to trust him with  _his_  airship. He'd rather walk around in the snow naked than do that.

“I'm just saying we could easily tell Vivi the truth in return for unlimited access to the airship,” Alternis mentioned while shrugging. “It wouldn't be that hard. It'd literally just be 'Vivi, today isn't about you; you were just named after the holiday and you're ruining mom and dad's romantic adventures'.”

“If you say it like that she's just going to get upset! There is no way I'm letting you use the Eschalot if you plan to say that!” Ringabel complained. Besides, Ringabel knew that Alternis would just take the Eschalot out anyway whether Ringabel gave him permission to or not, so there really was no point in giving it to him in the first place. It did still leave him without help though.

“Told you he wouldn't do it,” Lyvia snarked while walking next to her mother. Ringabel just sighed and continued walking. Seeing how annoyed her husband was, Edea tried her best to deal with the twins in her own way.

“Leave your father alone, you two. He's trying his best,” she told them while pinching their arms. Both of them let out a small yelp before rubbing where their mother had pinched them and mumbling “sorry, dad” under their breath. Ringabel just shook his head and continued to try and figure out how he was going to break the truth to Valentine. He was starting to feel a bit silly and blamed fatherly love for his inability to tell his daughter the truth. It wouldn't have been this difficult for him at all otherwise.

When the family of six finally reached the cafe, Valentine rushed inside and grabbed a seat before the rest of them could even make it through the front door. By the time the rest of them had sat down, she had already ordered three kinds of parfaits and was excitedly awaiting the first one to show up. Edea and Zealan promptly ordered parfaits for themselves, while Alternis just ordered a cup of coffee and a cupcake to go with it. Ringabel and Lyvia, meanwhile, just stared at the menu in attempts to find at least one thing that didn't have sugar in it, but they weren't having any luck.

“Parfaits! Parfaits! Parfaits for Valentine's Day!” Valentine sang while continuing to wait for her first parfait to arrive. A waitress nearby started to laugh when she heard the song, and before long she walked over to the table.

“It's not every day that the Grand Marshal and General Lee grace our little shop with their presence. You must all be here to celebrate Valentine's Day like the rest of our customers,” she pointed out. Ringabel felt himself panic a bit as he started to worry that the waitress would accidentally be the one to reveal the truth. Having a stranger be the one to do so instead of him was definitely less than ideal.

“Ah yes, we are indeed here to celebrate Valentine's Day!” Ringabel told the waitress before Valentine could say anything. “Our youngest here, Valentine, just turned eight today you see, so we figured we'd take her out for parfaits in order to celebrate.”

The waitress looked at Ringabel, and he hoped she had an inkling about what was going on. Luckily for him, she just nodded and took out her notepad, probably ready to serve them.

“Well then I guess in honor of Valentine's Day, this little lady can get herself a free parfait,” she mentioned while preparing to write. The last thing Valentine needed though was more parfaits.

“Oh don't worry about us, we already placed our order. Speaking of which, do you think you can check on that for us?” Edea asked the waitress, who once again nodded before putting her pen and notebook away.

“Just give me a minute and I'll be back with an update on your desserts,” the waitress mentioned before running off. Ringabel let out a sigh of relief and went back to looking at the menu. The only thing that seemed remotely appetizing to him was the coffee.

“Daddy, you don't seem happy at all!” Valentine suddenly pointed out. Ringabel looked over her and could see she was attempting to climb on the table to reach her hand over to him. Edea had to grab her to make sure she didn't break anything.

“Oh, I'm fine, dear. Daddy just has a lot on his mind right now,” Ringabel told her while continuing to glance over the menu. He hoped he could tell her the truth before there were anymore close calls, but he wasn't having any luck with feeling confident enough to tell her.

“Are you sure, daddy? Maybe mommy can give you one of those special hugs! Lyvia said those always make you feel better!” Valentine stated while sitting in her mother's lap. Ringabel felt his ears turn pink and watched as Edea's did the same. Meanwhile, the twins had busted into laughter and looked like they were on the verge of tears. Ringabel knew Valentine was smart and old enough to know what a “special hug” actually was and that she shouldn't be mentioning it in public, but with the influence of the twins in Valentine's life, he should have expected something like this to happen.

“Mr. Lee is just wondering what store he should take you to in order to get you a few more presents,” Zealan suddenly mentioned. Ringabel, shocked by the fact Zealan had said something, looked over at him. Zealan's face was mostly covered by the hood and scarf he wore when they went out, but Ringabel could still tell he was trying his best to get the situation back under control. For that, Ringabel was grateful.

“Presents? With an s? As in more than one!?” Valentine asked in disbelief. Ringabel and Edea had already given Valentine enough presents for her birthday, but Ringabel didn't think a few more would hurt. He also couldn't say no to getting his daughter anything else, since he could see how excited she was by the idea of getting more gifts.

“Why, yes...! I was considering taking you to the plush shop after we eat in order to get you a few more stuffed animals for your collection,” Ringabel told Valentine, who gasped with excitement. Edea gave Ringabel a look of concern, and he mouth “don't worry” in hopes of easing her doubts. Edea, however, was ready to give Ringabel the nudge he needed to get things done.

“And after we finish at the plush shop, daddy has something very important to tell you when we get home,” Edea told Valentine, who tilted her head in confusion. Ringabel knew Edea had only said that to make sure he got the truth out, but he had really wished she hadn't put him on the spot like that. Now there was no way of getting out of this, though it was probably for the best.

“What is it daddy? You can just tell me now!” Valentine stated while staring at her father. Ringabel took one good look at her eyes and knew he didn't have the heart to tell her the truth. He had to think of something quick, or else he'd say something stupid out of panic.

“Urm, well you see, Valentine... Today is, uh... Oh look, the parfaits are here!” Ringabel mentioned as quickly as he saw the waitress returning. He was glad she had returned when she did, or else things could have gotten ugly. Edea, however, was giving him a look of disappointment now and he had to mouth “sorry, dear” when Valentine wasn't looking. He had at least tried though.

After everyone had finished their desserts at the cafe, the group took a quick stop to get Ringabel and Lyvia a bite to eat before heading to the local plush shop. Valentine had been so distracted by the parfaits, she had forgotten Ringabel had to talk to her, much to his relief. He knew he couldn't keep quiet much longer though, since as soon as they got home, Edea was bound to bring up the conversation again. He thought perhaps he might be able to just tell her in the plush shop, but he wasn't sure if it was an appropriate setting. At least if she did get upset though, she'd be surrounded by cute stuffed animals that he could buy for her.

While Valentine ran around the store, Zealan kept an eye on her while Edea pulled Ringabel to the side to talk. He had no doubt it was going to be about what had happened back at the cafe, and he hoped it wouldn't be a bad conversation. Edea knew he was trying his best, he just needed a bit more of a push before he could finally say something.

“You have to tell her as soon as we get home, Ringabel. There's no way around it anymore,” she told him with a stern tone. Edea was getting serious now, and Ringabel was worried she was starting to get angry with him.

“Believe me, I know that, Edea. I've been wanting to tell her this entire time, but it's difficult for me to,” he mentioned to her, but she just shook her head. It seems she didn't have much confidence left in him.

“I told you, Ringabel. All you need to do is sit her down and explain to her what the holiday is actually about. It really isn't that hard, you're just having bad luck with all of this,” she explained.

Ringabel sighed in response and looked over at Valentine, who was having Zealan pick her up so she could grab a stuffed Rafflesia from the top shelf. He knew it wasn't bad luck that was getting in the way of his ability to talk to her, it was something else. Something more familial.

“Look at her, Edea... Look at how happy she is,” he pointed out. Edea turned her head to look at Valentine as well, and couldn't help but smile a bit herself when she saw the giant grin on her daughter's face.

“She is pretty happy. I mean, she thinks she has an entire day dedicated to her, so why wouldn't she be happy?” she asked to Ringabel while nudging him a bit. Ringabel let out a small laugh while leaning up against the wall. He was still watching Valentine, who was still smiling.

“That's exactly it, Edea. If I tell her the truth, I'd feel like I'd be robbing her of something that makes her happy. I don't think any little girl deserves that, especially not our daughter,” Ringabel admitted to her. Edea gave Ringabel a sad smile before grabbing his hand and looking back at Valentine.

“You don't have to worry about that, Ringabel. Even if you do tell her the truth, Valentine's Day is still her birthday, and there's nothing that's going to change it. Just because she was named after the holiday and not vice-versa, it won't make today any less special to her. We're still going to be spending most of our time with her on her birthday, we're just also going to have a bit of time to spend with each other too,” Edea assured him while squeezing his hand.

“I guess you're right,” Ringabel told her while starting to smile a bit. That was probably the most helpful thing he had heard all day, and it definitely made things a bit easier on him. He was still a bit sad he'd have to tell her the truth, but Valentine was a strong girl and he knew she could handle it. He'd miss her cheering to wake them up every February 14th, but he'd survive without it. His daughter would still be happy, he would be able to spend time with the love of his life, and things would be still okay.

“I know I'm right,” Edea stated with a bit of pride, causing Ringabel to laugh. He definitely looked forward to spending Valentine's Day with her again, especially since she never failed to make him smile. All he had to do now was make sure they would indeed be celebrating it again, which would hopefully happen as soon as they returned home.

Unfortunately, the family ended up returning home later than expected, as the twins had managed to knock over an entire shelf of merchandise and were forced to clean up after themselves. As soon as Ringabel stepped through their front door though, he prepared to tell Valentine the truth. Edea had definitely boosted his confidence earlier, and he believed he finally had the best way to explain things to Valentine. Wanting to talk to her alone, Ringabel ushered the others out of the front room before having Valentine sit on the couch. It was now or never, well, now or Edea would tell her instead and probably make him look bad.

“You need to talk to me still, daddy?” Valentine asked while kicking her feet. She was holding onto one of the four stuffed animals they had bought her, and the other three were scattered around on the couch. Ringabel hoped they'd be enough to keep her happy.

“Yes, I need to tell you something very important,” he started to explain. Valentine just looked at him and kept kicking her feet, curious about what her father had to say.

“Is it about what happened at the cafe? With me mentioning the special hug? Zealan said I shouldn't have said that!” she mentioned. Despite that being something he did indeed want to talk to her about, it would have to wait for now.

“Ah, no... We'll talk about that later. For now though, I want to you to understand something. Sometimes, parents say things to their children that... That aren't true,” Ringabel continued to explain.

“Oh, I know that! That's called lying, duh! Mommy says that if I ever lie, an evil ghost will come haunt me from beyond the grave!” Valentine mentioned with a look of determination. In the back of his head, Ringabel hoped Edea didn't start joking about a ghost coming to haunt him next.

“Yes, that is true. Well, not the part about the ghost, that's just your mother trying to get you to behave. Anyway, sometimes... Sometimes parents lie in order to make their children happy. We say things that aren't true because we think it's what our children want to hear,” Ringabel kept explaining. Valentine tilted her head, trying to understand what her father was getting at.

“Did you and mommy lie to me about something, daddy?” Valentine asked while continuing to tilt her head. “Cause if you did, you'd get in trouble with grandpa! If I get in trouble with you and mommy for lying, than you two need to get in trouble with grandma and grandpa!”

“Ah, well....” Ringabel said in attempts to continue explaining, but he was getting a bit nervous. He couldn't back down now, but it was getting hard again. Taking a deep breath, Ringabel finally decided it was time to tell the truth. “Valentine's Day isn't a holiday about you, in fact, it wasn't even named after you. Your mother and I decided to name you Valentine after the holiday, which is actually a day in which you celebrate the relationships you have made with other people, both romantic and familial. The only reason I told you the holiday was about you was because I thought it would be cute, and you seemed fond of the idea, yet nowadays your mother and I would also like to celebrate the holiday in the evenings too. We'll still celebrate your birthday every year, but at some point your mother and I will be going out on our own. I'm sorry we didn't tell you sooner Valentine, I just didn't want to upset you.”

Valentine spent the next minute staring at her father in complete silence. She wasn't showing any signs of being angry or upset, which was hopefully a good sign, but it could still end badly. The fact she wasn't talking worried Ringabel because he thought she was about to burst into tears and start calling him names any second now. He was trying not to panic, which he shouldn't have been panicking in the first place since he had finally told her the truth, but it was difficult not to. He just hoped she'd say something soon.

“...is that it?” Valentine calmly asked while looking at her father with a puzzled look. She was reacting a lot better to this than Ringabel had expected.

“.....yes?” Ringabel told her with a bit of confusion. He was still a bit unsure of how she felt, but it definitely hadn't seemed to have affected her. That was a good sign at least.

“Oh, I already knew that! I figured it out the birthday after you first told me, daddy! I just never told you and mommy I knew because I liked all the attention you gave me!” Valentine happily admitted. “I won't get upset if you and mommy celebrate the holiday too, because duh, that's what the holiday is all about! If that's all though, I'm gonna go put these into my room now!”

Ringabel just stared at Valentine as she hopped off the couch and skipped out of the room. He had to sit down in order to absorb what he had just heard, and once he had taken it all in he couldn't believe his 8-year-old daughter had turned the tables on him. He had been worried she would start having trust issues, but now he was starting to think he'd be the one having them now. Of course, his daughter was still young, so he was probably just being overdramatic. He couldn't help but wonder what else she had been hiding from them though.

“....you okay there, Ringabel?”

Ringabel turned his head and saw Edea walking towards him. She had put her hair up as if she was ready to go out again, but Ringabel was still too busy getting over what had just happened to question it. Edea sat next to him and waved her hands in front of his eyes in attempts to see if he was even paying attention still, but he just continued to stare.

“...she already knew, Edea,” he told her with a deadpan tone. Edea just looked at him and blinked for a second before trying to respond.

“She already knew?” she asked with a confused look. Ringabel nodded and leaned back to look at the ceiling, and Edea couldn't help but laugh.

“What's so funny, Edea?” Ringabel asked, still sounding completely deadpan. “The fact I went through all of this trouble just to learn I didn't have to say anything? Or the fact our little girl just played me for a fool?”

“Neither, Ringabel!” Edea assured him while leaning up against him. “I just think you're being a bit dramatic. I mean, I wasn't expecting this either, but I'm still acting normal.”

“That's because you're not the one who had to tell her,” Ringabel mentioned while putting his arm around Edea. He was bit less dramatic now, but still a bit shocked about what had happened. At least he could finally relax after a long and exhausting day... Or so he had hoped.

Without warning, Edea suddenly jumped up and pulled Ringabel onto his feet. It looked like he wasn't relaxing after all. “Come on, Ringabel! Now that that's over with, let's go out to eat! Just the two of us! We can finally have time to ourselves since Zealan agreed to watch Valentine and make sure the twins don't do anything stupid!” Edea told him with a smile. “I got us reservations at your favorite restaurant and everything!”

“You did? When??” Ringabel asked while perking up. The thought of being able to eat a nice dinner alone with his wife made things a bit better, and it was truly a good way to end Valentine's Day. They had already celebrated their daughter's birthday, and it was about time they got some time to themselves.

“Well, I actually haven't made them yet... But they're not going to say no to the Grand Marshal and her most trusted General, are they?” Edea mentioned while continuing to smile. Ringabel laughed and smiled in return, knowing well enough she was right.

“Then shall my Lady Grand Marshall lead the way, or will her General be escorting her instead?” Ringabel asked with a small bow. Edea once again took his hand and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Come on you big goofball, we have a nice evening waiting for us,” she mentioned before leading Ringabel to the front door. “Though I wouldn't mind having my General escort me there.”

Giving Edea one last smile, Ringabel opened the front door, and with that, the two were off; ready to celebrate Valentine's Day for the first time in a few years.

**Author's Note:**

> Another birthday fic written for my Bravely Babies AU. A good chunk of the children got fics that year, and this was actually the first one I wrote, since at the time, Valentine had the earliest birthday. I hadn't planned on writing anything for the holiday that year, or for any of the birthdays at all, but I suddenly had the idea the night beforehand and rushed to get something done. This silly fic was the result.


End file.
